"Are you all right?" Helene asked Adrian and Selina, who sat frozen in front of her. "Would one of you say something?"

"Could you repeat what you just said?" Selina asked.

"Sure," Helene nodded. "I'm pregnant. Hazel told me."

"That's what I thought you said," Selina told her. "I just wanted to be sure." She sucked in her breath and stood up. "I think I need to go lie down."

"What's the matter?" Helene asked her. "I thought you'd be happy."

"Oh, I am," Selina nodded. "I just need a little time to process this. It's big news."

"I understand," Helene said. As Selina headed for a bedroom, Helene looked at Adrian. "Do you need to rest too?" She asked.

"Oh, no," Adrian said. "I'm fine. In fact, I think I'll go tell Dad. And Grandma. And Grandpa. They'll be glad to know this too."

And before Helene could respond, he shot out of the house and she heard him drive away, probably to Enid's. That's the only place she knew of that his grandfather was.

Sighing, she went to call her father. "I just told them," she said.

"And how did they react?" He asked. "Scared, like I told you they would be?"

"Well, yeah," Helene nodded. "Adrian's off to Enid's and Selina is resting. Why couldn't they just be happy for me like you and Mom were?"

"I was in Adrian's place once," Alistair told her. "When your mother told me we were going to have you, I was terrified in the beginning. But after I had time to get used to the idea, I realized I couldn't wait. Adrian will come around. He just needs time. As for Selina, I don't know what to tell you. But based on how she was when Adrian was on the way, it might be best not to mention the baby around her any more than is absolutely necessary. At least until she's better, anyway."

"All right," Helene said. "I'll keep that in mind. Thanks, Daddy."

As soon as she hung up the phone, she made up a cup of tea and took it in to Selina. "Are you better now?" She asked. "Can I get you anything else?"

Selina took the tea. "Thank you," she said. "But you really didn't need to do this. I'm fine. After I finish this, I'll go home and fill Elijah in on our newest addition. I'm happy for you and Adrian, Helene. I really am." She finished her tea, and then got up to leave, telling Helene goodbye. "Don't be afraid to call me if you need anything," she said, giving Helene a hug. "Take care of yourself."

"You too," Helene said. "Goodbye."

Elijah came into the bedroom and heard the shower running. He opened the bathroom door and went inside. "So did you get to see Adriand and Helene?" He asked. "How are they?"

The water turned off and Selina stepped out of the shower. She faced him dripping wet from head to toe. "Sorry for the delay, boss," she said. "We can get started on work now...if you want."

She sashayed toward him and kissed him. "Oh, look," she said. "Your suit's wet. We might as well take it off."

"Perhaps," Elijah said. He grabbed a towel and began patting her dry. "But you didn't answer my question: how are Adrian and Helene? Are they all right?"

Selina began nibbling on his ear, but then quite suddenly burst into tears, clinging to him again. "It's not fair!" She cried. "They ruined everything!"

"Ruined what?" Elijah asked, putting her at arms' length and wrapping a towel around her. "What's happened?"

Selina sobered for a moment. "Nothing," she said. "I'm fine." She let the towel drop, eased off his suit jacket and began unbuttoning his shirt. "Now, where were we?"

"Why can't you just tell me about Adrian and Helene?" Elijah asked. "Clearly they've done something to upset you and I'd like to know what it is so I can make you feel better."

"You can't do anything," Selina said, sniffling. "So there's no point in dwelling on what can't be changed. I'll be able to deal with it. I'm happy they're having a baby. A baby who will call me grandma!" The last word made her dissolve into fresh sobs and she threw herself into his arms, soaking his shoulder. She even blew her nose once.

Elijah winced, picked her up, and carried her to bed. "Now why don't you just lie down, take a deep breath and sleep?" He said, running a hand over her bare back. "You've been through a lot. No wonder you're so overwrought." As she continued to whimper, he shushed her. "It's all right," he whispered. "It's all right. Just shut your eyes and everything will be all right tomorrow."

She stopped crying and sniffled. "You're right," she said. "I'm sorry. I'll be okay tomorrow."

Elijah was calm. Selina had had a shock, but she seemed all right. She'd said she was happy for Adrian and Helene and that was that. But about a week later, he woke up early one morning to the most awful noise: It sounded as if someone was dying and it was coming from his and Selina's bathroom.
He got out of bed and went to the bathroom door, knocking on it. "Are you all right, darling?" He asked her.
"No," she called back. "I don't feel so good. I've been sick in here for almost an hour."
"Well, can I get you anything?" He asked.
"No," she said. "I think I'm good now." She flushed the toilet and came out of the bathroom. He looked her over. She looked all right. Not overly pale or anything.
"Why don't you try and get some sleep?" He said. "That might make you feel better."
She nodded. "All right."
He watched her fall asleep and couldn't get back to sleep himself. It had been several days since he'd truly slept well.

The next morning, he went to see Lucy and noticed something strange. "Lucy?" He said to his niece, "where's the bear that's always on your pillow?"
"Mommy wanted it," Lucy said. "She came in my room and took it away."
"Why?" Elijah asked.
Lucy shrugged. "I dunno."
They went out to breakfast and were well into eating when Selina came into the kitchen. "Good morning all," she said cheerfully. "How are we today?"
"Mommy," Lucy asked, "what's wrong with your tummy?"
Selina's middle was protruding slightly and she had her palm on it. When she reached for her coffee cup, Lucy's bear fell on the floor.
Selina looked down and picked it up, cradling it. "Well, look who's here!" She said, eyeing the bear fondly. "Willy, the newest member of our family!"
Lucy frowned. "His name's not Willy! It's Big Bear!"

"No!" Selina clutched the bear. "His name is not Big Bear. It's Willy!"

Lucy carefully got off her chair and went to grab the bear's arm. "It's my bear! Give it back! Why does everyone always take my bear?"

Selina pulled the bear from the other side. "Let it go, Lucy! If you don't, I'll send you to your room!"

When Lucy refused to let the bear go, Selina pried her fingers off his arm, handed the bear to Elijah and then picked Lucy up to take her to her room. "I'm not kidding," she told Lucy. "This is not a bear! It's your brother Willy and you will stay in here until you remember that."

"This isn't fair!" Lucy said.

"Well, life's tough," Selina said. She gave Lucy a spanking and slammed Lucy's bedroom door closed, going back to the kitchen, taking Willy from Elijah. "I'm glad that's settled," she said. "I don't know what's gotten into Lucy. She's usually such a good girl." She cradled the bear to her and then grinned at Elijah. "This is nice, just the three of us out here. Isn't it?"

"Well, of course," Elijah said. "I think I'll have a talk with Lucy about what just happened. Is that all right with you?"

"Of course," Selina said. "But don't let her come out of her room for an hour. She's in time out."

"All right," Elijah said. "I won't be in her room for very long."

She nodded and he got up and went to Lucy's room, knocking twice on her door. "Come in," Lucy said.

He went inside and found Lucy sitting against her bed clutching a doll. "What's wrong with Mommy?" she asked. "She's scaring me. and she hitted me too!"

Elijah sat next to her and sighed. "I don't know," he said. " And I 'm sure she didn't mean to hurt you. But maybe you should go be somewhere else until I figure out what's wrong with her. Would that be all right with you?"

"Where would I go?" Lucy asked. "To be with Daddy?"

"If you'd like," Elijah said. "Is that what you want?"

"Okay," Lucy said. Elijah picked her up and they left her room and went back to the kitchen.

"I thought you said you were going to keep her in time out," Selina told Elijah. "I'm surprised that you'd do something like go against my rules. The kids will never respect us unless we back each other up."

"And normallly, I would," Elijah said. "But Lucy hasn't done anything to deserve punishment."

"Yes, she did!" Selina said. "She wasn't very welcoming to Willy. And families have to be nice to each other."

"What's wrong with you?" Elijah asked. "Because clearly, something has happened. And I'm going to send Lucy to Niklaus' so you and I can figure out what it is and we can fix it."

"You don't like Willy either?" Selina asked. "Do you know what happens to a boy's self-esteem if his father doesn't like him? You should, after all those years of growing up around Nicky and your stupid father. What's his problem anyway? Was hating Nicky not enough and he has to hate me too now? What did I ever do to him?"

"We'll discuss that after I come back from dropping off Lucy," Elijah said. "I trust you and Willy will find a way to entertain yourselves while we're gone?"

"Damn right we will," Selina said. "And hell, you don't even have to come back if you don't want to. Stay away forever, for all I care!"

"I'll be back," Elijah said to her. "I won't leave you now, even if you have completely lost your mind."

"Well, this is a surprise," Klaus said when he answered the door and found Elijah and Lucy on the other side. "What's going on?"

"Mommy's gone crazy!" Lucy burst out. "She took my bear and hitted me amd made me stay in my room!"

"Well, why would she do that?" Klaus asked Lucy, taking her in his lap when they reached the living room. "Did you do something naughty?"

"No," Lucy shook her head earnestly. "I was a good girl."

"It's true, Niklaus," Elijah said. "Selina hasn't been herself since she found out Helene and Adrian are expecting. She's now convinced that Lucy's bear is a child and can't be told otherwise. I thought it might be best if you kept Lucy here until I sorted the situation out."

"I don't know what you're so worried for," Klaus said. "She's probably just pregnant herself. It'll go away in a few months."

"I don't think so," Elijah said. "We haven't even talked about that yet. I mean we will eventually, but we haven't said a word yet."

"Well, it might not hurt to bring it up," Klaus said. "This seems to be desperate cry for help."

"I'll bear that in mind," Elijah said. "Now, I should probably be going now. Left alone in the state she's in, who knows what Selina might decide to do? It could be anything!"

Selina pulled up in front of Damon's house and parked the car. She had to go inside and see Sam. She had to salvage whatever she could of the relationship with Sam. Soon, he'd be all grown up like Adrian was and she didn't want him to hate her because they'd never spent any time together. She took Willy out of the carseat and walked with him to Damon's front door, knocking three times.

"And how's Grandma today?" Damon asked when he opened the door. "Did you come to see Sam?"

Selina burst into tears and threw her arms around his neck. "My god, how did you find out?"

"Helene told me first," Damon said. "And may I say 'congratulations'?"

"No, you damn well may not!" Selina said. "I don't want to be anybody's grandma! It was hard enough the first time. I can't go through it again!" She sniffled and ripped off her clothes, standing in front of Damon in just her underwear. "I mean, look at me! I'm hot, right?"

"Well, of course!" Damon said. "I've never thought otherwise."

"Grandmas are supposed to be old and wrinkly and knit sweaters!" Selina said. "That's not me! I just-I feel terrible. I feel undesirable."

"I could help with that." Damon reached out and slipped a finger underneath the clasp of her bra, just in time to hear a small noise. He turned around and saw Joshua standing just inside the kitchen, looking at him with disapproval.

"Father," he said. "Come in here, please."

"Why?" Damon asked. "I wasn't actually going to do anything! Give me some credit, would you?"

"You were thinking about it," Joshua said. "That's why you greeted her the way you did. You thought you'd upset her and then she'd be vulnerable, and the two of you would-" He winced, not finishing the sentence."

"Oh, don't judge me," Damon said. "I bet you a hundred dollars that you had the exact same reaction the first time you saw her."

"When I first saw her, she just seemed sad to me," Joshua said. "She missed you. A lot."

"She did?" Damon asked.

"Yes," Joshua nodded. "She thought I was you at first. I mean, not that I blame her, because she had no idea what I looked like. And perhaps I did think she was pretty. I still do. In a purely aesthetic sense of course. And that's all you should feel too. She's married for god's sake!"

"Oh, all right," Damon said, looking perturbed. "Fine. I'll go tell her to put her clothes on."

"Just make sure you do," Joshua said, following his father out of the kitchen.

"You don't have to follow me," Damon said.

"I want to be absolutely sure," Joshua said. "Both for her sake and yours."

Damon handed Selina her clothes. "Here," he said. "You have to put these back on."

"But why?" Selina asked. "I thought we were going to have some fun."

"We still can," Damon said. "Why don't you put on your clothes and we'll go play ball in the backyard? That's fun, isn't it?"

"I was thinking more like grown up fun," Selina said. "You always say you want to have grown up fun with me."

"Stay strong," Joshua mouthed, keeping a firm grip on Damon's arm.

"Well, just because I say it doesn't mean I mean it," Damon said. "People say things they don't mean all the time."

"Like when you said you wanted to marry me and then ran off with Katherine?" Selina asked.

"Exactly!" Damon said. "See? You should know by now that you can't trust a word I say."

Selina looked down at her clothes, dropped them on the floor and put her fingers just inside her panties with a grin.

"Unless you want to poke out your eyes, I would leave now," Damon said to Joshua. "I can handle this. Don't worry."

Joshua nodded and disappeared and Damon watched, frozen as Selina took off her underwear. "What do you say now?" She asked, twirling her hair. "Come on, it's okay. You can be honest."

He looked her over and then smirked. "All right," he said. "I'll look you over if it's so important to you. And if I see anything I haven't seen before, I'll throw a dollar at it." He put a hand on her shoulder and gave her body a very deliberate sweep. "All right," he said after he was done. "Here are your clothes. Put them on. I'm going to call Elijah to come and get you and if you aren't dressed by the time I get back, I'll dress you myself."

"You're no fun," Selina said.

Damon went to call Elijah and by the time he got back, Selina was dressed, although her expression was sour. "Elijah will be here in a little bit," he said. "Thank you for being dressed. I wouldn't want him to get the wrong idea about us."

Selina just stuck her tongue out at him and sat down on the sofa. "Why did you have to ruin this?" She asked. "I wasn't asking for much."

"You don't know what you were asking for," Damon said. "And I hope you appreciate that I didn't give it to you. It would have ruined your life."

"Oh, it would not," Selina said. "Stop being so overdramatic."

Just then there was a knock at the door. Damon went to answer it and ushered Elijah inside. "She's right here," he said, pointing to the sofa. "You can take her, feel free. The sooner the better."

"Thank you," Elijah said. He held out his hand and Selina grudgingly took it.

"When you get home," Damon said to Elijah quietly, "I suggest you sleep with her. She asked me to and she was very ticked off when I said no."

"I'll remember that," Elijah said.

Selina finally brightened. "Are we going to have fun when we get home? I'll have to take care of Willy first, but then I'm all for it!"

"I don't believe this," Damon said as he and Sam barged into Stefan and Anna's house. "I don't believe what I just did. Is this a wood table?"

"Yes," Stefan said when he saw the small side table Damon was standing in front of.

"Good," Damon said. He put Sam down and began hitting his forehead on it repeatedly.

"What are you doing that for?" Stefan asked.

"I screwed up bad," Damon said.

"What did you do?" Anna asked.

"It's not what I did do," Damon said, finally sparing his head more beatings and coming to sit next to Anna on the sofa. "It's what I didn't do. Selina came by and she was all upset because Adrian and Helene are gonna have a kid and she didn't like the idea of being a grandma. She stripped down to naked and insisted I have sex with her."

"And you didn't?" Stefan asked. "Wow."

"What did you do instead?" Anna asked.

"I called Elijah and told him where she was and he came and took her home."

"Well, you did a very noble thing," Stefan said. "And smart. If you hadn't done what you did, you'd probably be dead by now." Anna paused. "While we're on the subject of men in Selina's life who have ruined her, it seems Alfred's back." She gave Stefan a significant look.

"Who's Alfred?" Damon asked.

"The last guy to ever pay for getting on Selina's bad side," Stefan said. "And probably the only vampire she's ever created."

"Selina made a vampire?" Damon asked. "I have to meet this guy. Who is he?"

"Louisa Forbes' son of all people," Stefan said. "She got him in his old age. When she found out, it as good as killed Louisa."

"Who's Louisa?" Anna asked. "A friend of Selina's?"

"Try archenemy," Damon said. "They fought over me."

"Why?" Anna asked. "Was it your cavalier attitude? Your hatred of any sort of commitment? Or did you just assume that alcohol was an attractive scent?"

"Wow," Damon said. "That's mean."

"I'm just curious," Anna replied. "Don't bother answering if you don't want to. But back to Alfred, Roxie's taken him under her wing. He's spent practically all of his existence in some hospital making the staff think he was crazy. It stopped him from having to actually hunt to get blood."

"How did Roxie meet him?" Stefan asked.

"Vince has been helping her with her campaign behind you and Nick's backs," Anna said. "And at one point, he thought it would be best to showcase how selfless Roxie was, so she had to go make friends with old people and there was Alfred."

"And now they're friends?" Stefan asked.

Anna nodded. "He gave her his house. But he lives there now. He and Roxie and Vince are roomies."

"Do you think Roxie would mind if we stopped by?" Damon asked. "Let's go now!"

After a week, Selina's crazy behavior hadn't improved and Elijah was on his last nerve. "Why do you have to keep getting up every five minutes?" he growled early one morning when she'd woken him up for what seemed like the gazillionth time. "Why can't you just get in bed and stay there like normal people?"

"Well, I'm sorry if it bothers you, but I have to take care of Willy," Selina said. "I'd be a horrible mother if I didn't. You've been upset a lot lately. What's the matter?"

"I haven't been getting any sleep because you've been messing with that damn bear," Elijah said. "I mean there are other reasons, but lack of sleep is the main one."

"And the other reasons are your own fault, aren't they?" Selina said. "You were the one who decided we weren't gonna have sex anymore."

"Well, what was the point?" Elijah asked. "Your stupid limitations sucked all the fun right out of it."

"Well, it's not my fault Willy is the only one that can do all the sucking right now," Selina said. "I know you like my breasts, but you're not the only person in this house who has use for them now and Willy needs them more than you do."

"He's a bear!" Elijah said. "A stuffed toy! You can't breastfeed a stuffed toy!"

"Yes, I can!" Selina said. "He's coming along quite nicely. You would know that if you paid the least bit of attention to him!"

A muscle in Elijah's cheek began to twitch. "You want me to pay attention to him?" He said. "All right. Since I can't sleep at all, lead the way!" He cackled wildly.

"Fine, I will!" Selina said. She led him to the room where Willy lay all bundled up in Lucy's old crib. "There he is," Selina said. "Take a good look."

Elijah looked at the bear for a moment and then picked him up, holding him by one arm, locking eyes with Selina. "This is not a person!" he yelled at the top of his lungs, ripping off the bear's arms, legs and head. Selina let out a shriek and fell to her knees, sobbing.

"Why did you do that?" She cried. "Why did you do that?" He pulled her up and led her to the shower, turning it on and shoving her head underneath the water. When he pulled her soaking head out, she said, "Stop, stop, I'm fine, I swear! But what are we going to tell Lucy about what happened to her bear?"

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Roxie asked Olivia as the two of them and Alfred approached Selina's front door. "I mean, Mom killed Alfred the first time. That might mean she doesn't want to ever see him again."

"Oh, please," Olivia said. "She's such a softie now that she would want to say sorry for inconveniencing him all these years. Trust me. We're doing the right thing."

She rang the doorbell and Elijah answered it. "Roxanne?" He asked her. "What are you doing here?"

"Can we come in?" Roxie asked. "We have a surprise for Mom."

Elijah reluctantly let the three of them inside. "Sit on the sofa," he said. "I'll let Selina know you're here. Then she can decide whether she wants to see you or not."

"Cheeful guy, isn't he?" Olivia said, watching Elijah's retreating back.

Roxie scoffed. "Yeah, I know, right?"

"So he means she's actually here?" Alfred asked. "I'm going to see her again?" He reached back to smooth down what little hair he had left.

"Oh, stop preening," Roxie said. "You're past that point, believe me."

Just then, Selina came into the room. "All right, Roxie. What's going on and why couldn't you have asked your dad for help with it?"

"Nothing's wrong," Olivia said, standing up and bringing Alfred up with her. "We just thought you wouldn't mind seeing an old friend."

Selina's eyes widened. "Alfred? Oh, my god!"

"Who is that?" Elijah asked Selina.

"I knew him during my bad period," Selina said. "You know, when I worked for you know who? I turned him."

Olivia was grinning widely now. "When you said you know who just now, I'm assuming you mean Lonely Heart."

"Well, yes," Elijah nodded. "Selina was one of the many innocents whose lives were ruined by that woman."

There was a moment of silence and Olivia burst out laughing. "Innocent? Her? Please! I don't know what she's told you ever since the two of you got together, but she didn't just work for Lonely Heart. She was Lonely Heart. And believe you me, she enjoyed every minute of it."